Mindful Conversations
by ryoucutie4ever
Summary: After getting lost and injured in the woods, Dipper has no choice but to summon Bill Cipher to help him before he dies of blood loss. Bill offers to help Dipper, but only if he agrees to let the demon into his mind. Having no other choice, Dipper makes the deal. He doesn't want to die, but Dipper gets the feeling he's gonna regret this. Canon-divergence after Dreamscapers BillDip
1. Chapter 1

Cutie: So for some reason I got a burst of inspiration to write some Gravity Falls fanfiction at 11pm last night. Have no clue where it came from considering I haven't written fanfiction in literally almost six years. I don't know if I'll continue this or not, but so far I like it, so I might.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gravity Falls. It belongs to Alex Hirsch.

 _Takes place after Dreamscapers but before Sock Opera. Bill has a human body in this._

Chapter 1 

Dipper walked through the forest with harsh steps, stomping through the leaves and snapping every twig he crossed. He was furious. How could Mabel say those things!? Telling him he was too obsessed with Gravity Falls, that he was too obsessed with the journals! He wasn't obsessed, he just wanted answers. Mabel just didn't understand, she didn't care like he did. She only cared about hanging out with her friends and chasing boys, she didn't actually care about what was going on around them.

Dipper ducked as he passed a few low branches, looking around to find that he was deeper in the forest than he realized. He stopped to take a deep breath. He was too angry to pay attention to where he was going, and now he'd gotten himself lost. He took another glance around to see if he'd recognize anything, but no such luck.

Thinking quickly, Dipper took out the journal and flipped through to see if it would have any pictures of the area he was in, or ideally a map of the forest. Even though he'd looked through the journal a hundred times over now, he meagerly hoped that he'd just missed something, maybe two pages had been stuck together and he'd find a way home.

The journal gave no map. He sighed in irritation. A moment passed, Dipper could feel the anger of what Mabel had said and the irritation of being lost build to a boiling point.

"Rraugh!" With a growl, he threw the journal across the way with it landing on its spine, opening to a random page before settling on the forest floor.

Dipper dropped to sit on the ground, his head hung low with defeat. He let out another sigh, leaning back to lay on his back, arms spread on each side. He looked up at the sky through the canopy of the trees, just listening to the sounds of rustling leaves and chirping birds.

He closed his eyes, trying to let himself calm down. He wouldn't be able to find his way home if he stayed irritated like this. The forest always helped to calm him, no matter how many times he walked through it. But it wasn't helping him now the way it usually did, and he was pretty sure it was because this anger was from Mabel.

She didn't usually irritate him to this degree, but when he refused to help with her latest crush of the week, she'd gone off on him about how he was starting to put the journal and the mysteries of Gravity Falls before her. That he didn't care about her as much as he cared about that stupid journal.

Dipper felt beyond hurt at her words, especially since he had in fact been helping her with her latest schemes in the previous days. He had just wanted the day to himself to go through the forest, enjoy the outdoors and see if he could find anything new. Maybe find some of the other creatures mentioned in the journal.

But Mabel had wanted him to help her set up a stage near the shack so she could have a concert with the band she'd suddenly started with Candy and Grenda to try and impress a boy in town who played guitar. He had actually helped the previous few days, getting her books from the library about how to play the keyboard and how to work a stage microphone. He just hadn't wanted to spend the entire day painting the stage with pink paint and glitter. Did she really need his help to do that anyway?

Regardless, it had ended in a fight with Dipper stomping off into the forest, determined to do what he'd set out to do that day regardless of what Mabel said.

So much for that. Now Dipper had to find a way home before dark, or everyone would surely get worried.

Dipper sat up and looked at the journal again. Slowly, he stood up and walked over to it, picking it up and brushing off the dirt that had jumped onto the pages. He glanced at the page it had opened itself to, and saw the passage about the gnomes. Dipper thought for a moment. They would probably know the forest better than anyone, and probably knew the way out.

He glanced around once again, but let out a groan. Even if the gnomes could help him, he didn't see any around and didn't know where their hideout was compared to where he currently stood.

He couldn't believe he allowed himself to get lost like this. Out of everyone, he pegged himself as the last person who would get lost in the woods. Guess he was wrong.

But he supposed he wasn't any closer to finding his way out by just standing there. Tucking the journal back in his vest, he started walking in the direction he was pretty sure he came from. Hopefully he wouldn't run into anything too dangerous.

 **_Time Skip_**

Dipper breathed heavily as he leaned against a tree. He glanced down at his leg, the blood sliding down to his shoes from the wound on his thigh. Quickly looking over his shoulder, he couldn't see the gremloblin chasing him anymore. Giving a sigh of relief, he dropped to the ground for the second time that day and leaned his back on the tree.

He'd accidentally stumbled upon the creature when he fell down a slope and pushed the monster into the dead deer it was eating. Needless to say, It didn't appreciate the interruption. Giving a deafening roar, the gremloblin chased Dipper further into the woods as the boy desperately tried to avoid a gruesome death. It had managed a swipe at Dippers leg while he was running, almost grabbing him but Dipper was able to duck out of the way when a tree branch smacked the monster in the face.

He'd managed to hide behind a thick tree as the creature lost sight of him. He could still hear it grunt and breath as it tried to find him for a few minutes before giving up and walking away.

"Oh, thank god," Dipper breathed out as he finally relaxed. He was sure he'd run out of energy before he could get away.

He was beyond exhausted as he continued to lean against that tree. There was no way he could get home at the moment; he barely had the strength to stand let alone find his way home. Dipper decided that, even though he didn't want to, he'd probably end up sleeping out here for the night. It wasn't like he hadn't done it before, but these weren't exactly ideal conditions.

Dipper shakily took the journal out once again, trying to distract himself from his current situation. He flipped through the pages, rereading what he already knew. Eventually, he got to the page about Bill Cipher.

Dipper paused, hesitating to turn the page. He was definitely in a less than ideal situation, and could really use some help to get back to the shack where it was safe and he could be bandaged up before any infection set in. But would asking Bill for help really be okay? Bill had tried to steal the combination to Grunkle Stan's safe, he tried to help Gideon, but at the same time, he had only done it for the deal...right? He didn't have any real animosity towards the Pines, he was just trying to fulfill his end of the agreement.

Dipper bit his lip, his eyes glancing to the side. He didn't _want_ to ask Bill for help, hell, it was the last thing he wanted, but he didn't really see much other option if he didn't want to spend the night in the middle of the woods with a blood-thirsty gremloblin too close for comfort.

He stifled a grunt of pain as a shock went through his leg. Blood was still pouring out of the wound, and Dipper knew if he didn't stop the bleeding he might not wake up.

"Damn it," Dipper didn't have a choice it seemed.

At least he had something to write the circle with, thought he wished it wasn't his own blood.

Grunting, Dipper moved in a position where he could write the circle on the ground. He moved his right hand to his mouth and bit down on the side of it while his left hand dipped into the wound. His scream was muffled as he drenched his fingers in blood. Hands shaking, he started to draw the circle on the ground.

It was only once he was finished drawing it that he remembered he didn't know the words to summon the demon.

" _Fuck!_ ," Dipper was beyond frustrated. This was the only thing he could think of that might help him, and he couldn't even finish it.

Dipper could still feel the blood dripping out of his wound, and he could feel himself start to get lightheaded.

Right before Dipper lost consciousness, he heard, " _ **Well, well, well. Look at you! At least you tried, right Pine Tree?**_ "


	2. Chapter 2

Cutie: I know this is a really quick update, but I actually had the first two chapters done before I even posted this story. I was gonna wait to post this, but then I realized this will at least cover what the summary says, so I figured I should post it. Again, not sure if I'm gonna keep updating this, but I do like where it's going so it's a good possibility I will.

Chapter 2 

Bill couldn't help but be surprised when he felt someone start to summon him. The last person to do so was Gideon, and Bill seriously doubted the chubby albino was trying a second time. He was even more surprised when the person suddenly stopped after drawing his circle. Bill could feel that the circle was drawn correctly, so the only reason they would have to stop would be that they didn't know his chant. It was pretty rare for someone to only know half of the process, though.

Curious and with nothing else to do, Bill decided to answer the summoning. And boy, was he amused at what he saw.

A bleeding out Pine Tree about to pass out from blood loss. And it looked like he had turned to Bill of all people for help. Oh yes, this was turning out to be good day.

"Well, well, well. Look at you! At least you tried, right Pine Tree?" Bill couldn't help but tease the boy before he left the conscious world.

After Dipper passed out and slumped against the tree behind him, Bill let out a disappointed sigh.

"It's rude to fall asleep while you're having a conversation, you know," Bill walked up to the boy and kneeled down to look at his pale face, "You humans have no manners, I swear."

Bill placed his hand on Dippers forehead, "If you're going to leave in the middle of it, I'll just have to bring the conversation to you!"

And in a flash, the dream demon was gone.

Dipper opened his eyes with a gasp. Quickly looking around himself, he saw he was standing in the forest and his leg was still bleeding, but he felt no pain or dizziness.

"What happened?" Dipper couldn't help but question. Everything was the same, but it was like he'd gone colourblind. Why was everything grey…?

Suddenly, Dipper remembered. "Bill!"

"You called?" Bill piped up from behind the boy, scarring Dipper to jump away and fall to the ground.

He couldn't help but think it was strange how he still felt no pain in his leg, even after falling on it.

Bill laughed as Dipper fell, "Sorry kid, I couldn't help it! You're easy to freak out with how jumpy you are!"

Dipper shook his head in annoyance, but let it go. "Whatever." He stood up, once again glancing with unease at his leg. It should hurt, right…?

Bill leaned forward on his cane, giving Dipper an almost bored look, "Nah, you won't feel any pain while you're in the mindscape. It's not really possible here since you aren't technically in a physical body."

Dipper sputtered. "Wha- Bill! Don't just read people's minds without permission!"

Bill shrugged, "Why not?"

"Because it's an invasion of privacy, ya creep!"

Bill rolled his eye, "Says you. Anyway, why'd you summon me, Pine Tree? You're the last person I'd thought would ever summon _me_ of all demons." He gave Dipper a somewhat curious glance.

He knew the boy had called him because of his injury, but he wasn't sure what Pine Tree wanted exactly.

Dipper blushed. "I-I needed help, and you were really my option. I was attacked by a gremloblin and it took off a chunk of my leg. I can't walk back to the shack and I need medical treatment."

Bill smirked, " So you were hoping I'd escort you home?"

Dipper let out an annoyed sigh, trying to get rid of the heat on face, "No. I was actually hoping you could fix my leg. I mean, I passed out because of blood loss, right? Isn't that why we're here?"

Bill nodded, "Yep! You were very rude to just leave in the middle of our conversation back there! I feel a bit offended." Bill gave him an exaggerated sad look, clasping his hands together in front of his chest.

Dipper just rolled his eyes. "Well excuse me, but I couldn't exactly help that, you know. But anyway, me passing out means the wound is worse than I thought. If it keep bleeding like it was, I'm gonna die before the sun comes up. I need you to fix my leg."

Bill stopped and looked at the boy again, his eye going over him. "You mean you're gonna die if I don't help you?" He stepped closer to Dipper, giving him an indistinguishable look.

Dipper stiffened. He didn't mean to tell the demon that. Now Bill knew he had the upper hand if they did in fact end up making a deal. "Y-yes." Just because Dipper saw Bill as the best option in this situation didn't mean he trusted the demon.

Bill paused for a moment, looking the boy over. Every second that passed had Dipper more anxious.

Finally, Bill gave him a shit-eating grin, "Fine. I'll help you."

Dipper let out a shaky breath. "T-thanks. So —"

"But what do I get for my services, Pine Tree? You didn't think I'd do this for free, right?" Bill still had that awful grin on his face, and it only grew when Dipper scowled at him.

"...What do you want?" Dipper hissed through clenched teeth. He knew he didn't have time to dawdle, every second he wasted in the mindscape with Bill was another second closer to death.

Bill gave a small "hmmm" as he placed his hand on his chin, looking to the side as if thinking. Suddenly he snapped his fingers with an excited, "Oh! I know!"

"Let me enter your mind!" He said with the most excited smile.

Dipper hesitated. But… "Aren't you in my mind right now? And weren't you able to enter Grunkle Stan's mind before? What's the point of getting permission? Not that I don't appreciate you asking first!" He quickly tacked on.

Bill gave him an annoyed look. "I was only able to enter Fez's mind because of the deal I made with Gideon. The deal overruled the restrictions of entering a person's mind. And we're in your mindscape right now 'cause you summoned me. I can't just walz in whenever I want, as much as I wish I could." He mumbled the last part with irritation clear on his face.

Dipper looked at Bill, confused. "But why do you even want entry into my mind? What could you gain?" Dipper suddenly gave Bill a suspicious look.

"It's because you want something from my mind, isn't it? What do I know that you want?" Was it because Bill wanted to know what was in the journal?

Bill laughed, waving his hand in front of his face. "Nothing, kid! Trust me, I already know everything written in that dumb journal. Most of it's wrong, anyway!"

"Wait, wha—"

"I just want 24 hour access to your head for entertainment! Works been pretty slow lately and I don't have much to do, so I figure why not have you entertain me? You're a pretty interesting meat-sack, I figure I can have a little fun with you!" Bill finished, ignoring Dipper's interruption.

"...You're just... _bored?_ You're not planning anything against me? Not gonna brainwash me once I give you access and make me your slave?" Dipper was pretty skeptical about Bill's intentions. Afterall, the page in the journal about him didn't say "Don't summon at all costs!" for no reason.

Dipper wanted to slap himself when he realized only just now how he had ignored that advice.

"As fun as having you as my slave sounds, I don't really need one. I can do everything I need myself, and having to look after a slave would just be tedious. No, I just some kind of entertainment. Unless you want me to get so bored I start terrorizing the town?" Bill smirked at him again. "I mean, switching the orifices of people's faces sounds pretty fun now that I think about it."

"No! Please, don't do that!" Dipper felt his stomach flip at just the thought. He sighed, "Fine. I'll let you enter my mind if you heal my leg. But you can't take any control of my body or wipe my memories. No messing with my head, got it?"

Bill happily held out his hand, now lit in blue flames. "It's a deal, Pine Tree!"

As Dipper shook his hand, he couldn't help but feel like he was probably going to regret this decision.


	3. Chapter 3

Cutie: So I was writing this chapter and went to go save it, but when I opened up my files I saw I already had a third chapter saved. Turns out I started writing this chapter weeks ago and completely forgot about it. I decided to try and mix both since I like both versions, so this is two different versions of the same chapter mushed together. Hopefully it doesn't read as awkwardly as I think it does.

Also, sorry about the mistakes in the last chapters; I don't have a Beta and I don't really proof-read these before posting. I'll try to do better.

Keeping up conversation between two characters when you suck at conversation yourself is hard.

Chapter 3 

"So how exactly are you gonna heal me?" Dipper couldn't help but wonder.

After all, Bill was a demon of the mind, not body. Now that he thought about it, could Bill even affect Dipper's physical body?

Bill straightened his bow tie. "That's easy, kid. Now that the deal is made, I have enough power to affect the real world enough to fulfil my end."

He thrust his cane into the ground, his fingers poised to snap when he looked over at Dipper, "You wanna be awake for this or stay unconscious? Rapid healing is extremely painful, I bet it'll be oodles of fun!" He said this with the most excited smile, like a kid in a candy store.

Dipper grimaced. His first instinct was to say 'hell no' but at the same time, leaving Bill alone with his body didn't sound very smart.

"...Will you try to make it quick? I don't exactly enjoy pain, you know." Dipper wasn't looking forward to waking up, but hopefully fixing his leg wouldn't take too long.

Bill's shoulders sagged. "I _guess_ I could make it quick. Takes the fun out of it, though." He pouted.

Dipper gave him a tight look as he stepped closer to the demon. "Please do."

A sigh. "Alright then. Get ready though, Pine Tree. Making this even quicker means it'll hurt more, just for a shorter amount of time." Suddenly, he smirked. "Try not to scream _too_ loudly. You might lure that gremloblin back."

As soon as Dipper opened his eyes, he let out a piercing scream. Dipper had never felt such agony, this hurt _so_ much! He could feel tears streaming down his face as the hole in his leg seemed to sew itself closed.

Make it stop, _make it stop!_ God, this hurt too much! Didn't Bill say he would make it quick!? It felt like the pain was going on for eternity!

"Geez kid, do you not know what keeping quiet is!? _Pipe down!_ " Dipper felt a hand cover his mouth, but he couldn't stop the screams and sobs from escaping.

To Dipper, the healing process felt like it went on forever, but really it only took ten minutes. Bill wished he could make it even quicker, as the kids' screaming, while usually welcomed, was grating on his nerves.

Suddenly, the pain stopped.

Dipper was still sitting against the same tree, but there was no more pain coming from his leg. He glanced at it and saw no indication of a wound ever being there, not so much as a scar. He sighed, his head going to rest against scratchy bark as he wiped the tears from his face.

Despite Bill healing the wound, Dipper still felt beyond exhausted.

 _'I should've asked him to help me get back to the shack, too. Idiot…'_ Dipper thought, berating himself for not thinking ahead. He figured since Bill used up a bit of energy to heal him, the demon would leave to recharge.

' _ **Being escorted home costs extra, Pine Tree!**_ '

"AH!" Dipper screamed, his head shooting up to look around him, trying to find where the demon was hiding.

' _ **Also, I'm a being of pure energy, kid! I don't need to "recharge" like you flashbags. How insulting!'**_

Dipper could hear Bill mocking him but couldn't see him. "Where are you, Bill!?" he hissed.

' _ **In your head, kid, which you really need to redecorate. These curtains are hideous!**_ ' Bill replied.

He was currently walking around in Dipper's mindscape. Unlike Stan's, which was essentially just a replica of the Shack, Dipper's mindscape was more a mixture of the forest and a regular home. Only there was no home, just random furniture strewn throughout the trees. Shelves were carved into trees, filled with books and glittery art pieces more than likely made by Mabel in the real world. The curtains Bill mentioned were acting as a canopy for a large bed sitting in between two trees. The bed sheets were sky blue and white with the curtains being a fading cyan blue.

Bill scoffed at the lack of colour. Honestly, couldn't Pine Tree lay off the blue a bit?

There was a soft breeze that blew Bill's hair to the side and ruffled the grass under his feet. The leaves of the trees shook as the scent of fresh pine wafted through the air. 

" _ **At least you have a nice aesthetic, much more relaxing and open than Fez's mindscape.**_ " Bill complimented, grabbing one of the books off the carved shelves to flip through.

Dipper noted how strange it was to hear Bill in his mind; it was like listening to his own thoughts in someone else's voice with Bill's signature echo on every word. He wasn't sure if he liked it, but Dipper supposed he would have to get used to it; he wasn't sure how often Bill would decide to hang out in his head.

Dipper let out a groan, "Don't go through all my thoughts, please. Those are kinda private." He didn't know how he knew Bill was going through his thoughts, he just _knew._ Probably because that's just how the demon was.

Bill continued going through the pages of the book he'd picked up, having already figured out that each book was actually a journal of Dipper's thoughts and feelings, his darkest secrets and deepest wishes. The one the demon was currently going through seemed to be a more recent one about Dipper's thought on his current summer vacation. Bill closed the book and put it back on the shelf, already bored with it after skimming a few pages.

" _ **I'm a bit surprised you're letting me roam around by myself instead of entering your mind to keep an eye on me. This must mean you trust me, eh Pine Tree?~**_ " Dipper couldn't see Bill, but he could _hear_ his grin.

Dipper felt confusion settle in, "How would I enter my mind while I'm awake?"

Bill rolled his eyes, " _ **You can't.**_ " Under his breath, he mumbled, " **At least, not yet….** _"_ In regular tone, he said, " _ **Go to sleep and join me, kid.**_ " The demon pouted, " _ **I'm getting bored already.**_ "

But Dipper shook his head and attempted to stand, letting out a small moan of pain.

"I need to get back to the Shack. I've been gone way too long, I'm sure Mabel is worried." He took small steps away from the tree before realizing that he had no energy and no idea of which direction to go.

Bill piped up, " _ **Didn't you two get into a fight before you left? She was being awfully rude to you Pine Tree, I'm surprised you're concerned for her."**_

Dipper wasn't surprised that Bill knew about their fight. After all, the demon had told them he'd be watching them after the... _events_ in Grunkle Stan's mind.

"Well...Yeah, she was being rude but she's still my sister, Bill. I didn't mean to stay out this late to begin with."

Suddenly there was a flash of yellow light that momentarily blinded Dipper. After a moment, Bill stood in front of him, looking at Dipper with narrowed eyes. Err...eye, since the left eye was covered with a black eye-patch.

Dipper jolted, not expecting the demon to appear in front of him like that. "...What?"

Bill eye narrowed a bit more as his expression became irritated for just a moment before he pulled it back into his usual smile.

"Nothing at all, Pine Tree! I'm just wondering how you plan to get home. You're still completely lost, right?"

Dipper wasn't sure how to react to Bill's mood swings, if that's even what that was. He felt more uneasy than before.

Dipper's shoulders slouched as he answered, "...Yeah, I am. You… wouldn't happen to know the way back to the Shack, would you?"

Bill laughed as he leaned on his cane. "Of course I do! But why should I tell you?"

Dipper wanted to strangle him. He was tired, all Dipper wanted to do at the moment was crawl into bed. But he couldn't, because he was out in the middle of the woods talking to the most annoying demon on the face of the planet.

Dipper let out an annoyed sigh. "Well, what is it gonna take for you to help me get back to the Shack?" He didn't want to, _really_ didn't want to. Making one deal with the demon was bad enough, making two just might cost Dipper his free-will.

Bill cocked his head to the side, thinking. After a moment, he gave a huge smile and snapped his fingers.

"I know! Help me with a little project I'm working on tomorrow and I'll make sure you get home safely. Sound good?" Bill held out his hand, ready to make a deal with the boy.

Dipper blanched at the vague deal. "What project!? I thought you said you were bored and that's why you wanted to enter my mind! Suddenly you've got a project you're working on?"

Dipper glared at the demon; did Bill lie to him? What kind of project would require the demon to enlist the help of a human, anyway?

Bill could hear Dipper's thought clear as day, though. "Relax, Pine Tree. It's a project I just thought of. Since I have access to your mind now, that means you can't hide anything from me."

Dipper grimaced at that.

Bill continued, "But that also means I'll be able to talk to you whenever I want or from wherever I am. I just wanna test the limits of this little deal of ours. You know, see what it can do. I wanna see how much I can influence you as well."

Dipper gave Bill a hard look. "What do you mean "influence"? Part of the deal was that you couldn't control me, Cipher! Did you forget that?"

Bill shook his head dismissively. "Of course I haven't forgotten! I never go back on my deals, Pine Tree, it's a bit insulting that you think I would. I have quite the work ethic, mind you."

Dipper snorted. Yeah, demons are known for their _incredibly ethical work practices._ What a load of —

"Hey! Excuse you, but I happen to take my job _very_ seriously!" Bill snarled. He was _not_ a deal breaker, never has been and never will be. Bill would never even think of trying to go against one of his own deals. Honestly, did the kid really think Bill took his work so lightly?

Dipper repeated his question as he crossed his arms, "Then what do you mean by 'influence'?"

Bill straightened his shoulders. "That's something you'll have to find out, Pine Tree. Now, I don't have a ton of time to keep chatting here with you. Work may be slow, but it isn't non-existent."

He held his flaming hand out to Dipper again. "You help me test my influence on you and in exchange I get you home safely. Deal?"

Dipper sighed. He was far too tired to keep this up. Bill still couldn't take over his mind or erase any memories. Like the demon had just said, he didn't go against the terms of the deal. So that meant Dipper was safe, at least for the most part, right?

"Fine." Dipper took Bills hand, feeling like an idiot as he did so.

Honestly, Dipper must have knocked his head on something when the gremloblin chased him. Why else would he be willing to make two deals with Bill in one day?

"Perfect!" Bill removed his hand and snapped his fingers.

Dipper only blinked but before he knew it, they were standing in his and Mabel's shared room. Dipper glanced over at Mabel's bed and saw it empty. She was probably downstairs waiting for him to come home.

Dipper looked back over at Bill, who was looking at the door with a less than happy face.

"Bill?" Dipper questioned, trying to get the demon's attention.

Bill snapped his head over to look at Dipper, his expression unreadable for the moment. "Yeah, kid?"

"I'm...gonna go to bed." Dipper wasn't sure why he was even telling Bill this; probably the exhaustion talking.

Bill shook his head, "Tsk, tsk, tsk. You humans and your need for sleep." Bill twirled his cane and tipped his hat, "Alright. I suppose I'll leave you alone. You're no fun when you're this tired anyway, kid. I'll see you in the morning to fulfill your end of the deal!"

Before Dipper could protest, the demon was gone. He sighed, but go ready to bed. Like hell he was gonna sleep in bloody jeans.

After Dipper had gotten cleaned up and changed into some pajamas, he contemplated going downstairs to tell Mabel he was home and safe, but just couldn't find the energy in him to do so.

' _I'll talk to her as soon as I wake up,'_ Dipper promised himself as he got under the covers of his bed.

His head had barely hit the pillow before he was asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Cutie: Damn, has it really been over three months since I've updated? ...Sorry. On the upside, I finally figured out where I'm going with this story.

Also, I realize that it's Journal one that has the information on how to summon Bill while Journal three just has a warning about him, but I couldn't think of any other way to get Bill to show up. Other than him being a creep and watching Dipper 24/7. So please just stretch your imagination a bit, I might be changing what's in the journal based on what the story needs.

* * *

As soon as Dipper found himself coming into consciousness, he wished he hadn't woken up. Groaning, he turned over and tried to get more comfortable, hoping that it would somehow help his searing headache. Despite the fact that Bill had healed him, he still felt a bit of soreness all over his body.

After a few minutes of shifting and trying to relax, Dipper gave up and threw off his covers. He slowly got up and went over to the bathroom to begin his morning routine. Switching on the light, Dipper stopped to look at himself in the mirror.

He gave himself an exasperated look. ' _What did I agree to yesterday…'_

Dipper kept trying to think of ways Bill could get around his conditions. There's no way the demon wouldn't try to abuse their deal. Would he try to take over Dipper's body in a different way? What did he mean by 'influence'?

Does he mean to take over Dipper's mind slowly by manipulation? Is that what he means by influence? Is Bill going to try and convince him to allow him to take over? Or is it something else?

Before Dipper could go any further in his thoughts, a knock on the door interrupted him. "Dipper? Is that you?"

Dipper opened the bathroom door to see Mabel standing in front of him. She was looking down at the ground, biting her lip and tugging on her sweater. She looked uncomfortable, guiltily looking up to meet her twin's eyes.

Oh right, their fight. Dipper had been so caught up with everything that had happened with Bill he'd nearly forgotten about the fight he and Mabel had. Dipper wasn't sure what to say when Mabel started speaking.

"Dipper, I'm sorry about what I said yesterday. I was just frustrated and stressed out from setting up the band. Candy and Grenda are having trouble playing their instruments and I still haven't figured out a set date for the concert. I didn't mean to take it out on you." Mabel had the decency to look ashamed for lashing out at him.

Dipper was still a bit miffed about what Mabel had said the previous day, but he told himself he was just being childish. He shouldn't hold a grudge against her for something so trivial.

Dipper stepped closer to her, arms already reaching around her in a hug. "Don't worry about it, Mabel. I know you didn't mean any of that. I should've told you that morning that I was planning on going out rather than just leaving without saying anything."

Dipper heard her give a sigh of relief as she hugged back. They gave each other their usual monotone pats before Mabel pulled away. She had a big smile on her face.

"I already made breakfast downstairs. I knew you were tired since you didn't wake up at nine like you usually do. Come down and eat, okay? It'll get cold if you wait any longer." She told him.

"I'm gonna go ahead and meet up and Candy and Grenda. Candy is having trouble keeping rhythm with the drums and Grenda still doesn't know how to read music. Wish me luck!" She said with a chipper voice before rushing out of the room.

Dipper gave a small smile as he watched her leave. He was glad that their small fight hadn't escalated any further. He wasn't sure he could handle a long drawn out argument with Mabel. She was right, anyway. It was the just stress talking, he knew even when Mabel said those things that she didn't mean them.

After taking a moment to finish up in the bathroom, Dipper quickly got dressed and went downstairs for something to eat. While putting on his shirt, he heard the front door slam and knew it was Mabel leaving.

Coming into the kitchen, he saw the french toast covered in glitter Mabel had left for him and paused for a moment. Before he even had a moment to think about scraping the glitter off, he heard a grumble from behind him.

"I wouldn't eat that if I were you, kid. Ingesting glitter is a choking hazard and I am not paying for a hospital bill to pump plastic out of you. Mabel ain't here so you won't hurt her feelings by tossin' it in the garbage." Stan walked past Dipper to the coffee maker, still in his underwear and tank top.

Dipper got a knife out of a drawer and went to sit down. "I'll just scrape it off. French toast is way too good to throw away. I'll happily risk choking for it."

Not accounting for the glitter she added to everything, Mabel was a pretty decent cook. Once all (or at least most) of the glitter was taken off, Dipper dug into his breakfast.

Actually, brunch he realized as he glanced over to the clock on the wall and saw that it was almost noon.

' _I guess it makes sense that I slept in. I was exhausted yesterday.'_ Dipper couldn't help the wince on his face when he thought about why he was exhausted. The pain from both the gremloblin and Bill's awful healing process were still fresh in his mind.

Dipper finished his breakfast, only choking on glitter once. He washed his dishes (since Grunkle Stan had told them he wasn't gonna clean up after their messes) and went back up to his room to grab his journal.

Dipper sat on his bed with the journal in his lap. He wasn't sure if he wanted to go out into the forest today. Not after yesterday, at least. Dipper needed a bit of a break from danger after such an ... _event_.

But at the same time, he didn't want to put off talking to Bill. He didn't like the demon, but he didn't like not knowing what he was planning even more. Dipper wanted to know every single part of their deal.

...Maybe he could get Bill to put it on paper? Like a contract! Yeah, then the demon couldn't go against anything that they'd agreed upon and-

But Dipper had already sealed the deal. A written contract, while a nice thought, would be virtually useless at this point. This was frustrating. Dipper was basically stuck; he'd already agreed to what was admittedly a rather vague deal -two actually- with no knowledge of what they entailed.

What was Bill after? Didn't he say he was coming by in the morning to "test his influence" on Dipper? It was already past 11AM with no sign of the dream demon.

Dipper hesitated, pulling the journal closer to him like it was a comfort. Would it be wise to call the demon? Did he even want Bill here?

He sighed. Whether he called Bill or not, the demon would probably show up today at some point. Dipper had been asking himself all sorts of questions since he woke up and it would be nice to get some answers.

With that thought in mind, Dipper flipped to Bill's page, ready to draw his summoning circle on a sheet of paper.

" _ **No need, Pine Tree.**_ " Dipper jumped at the sudden echoing voice in his head.

Frantically, he moved to put the journal back in its hiding spot. He didn't want Bill seeing it. Even if Bill supposedly knew everything written in it, that didn't mean the demon wouldn't try to destroy it.

" _ **I can hear you just fine. Don't waste time drawing the circle, next time just call me through the mindscape. It's a lot more convenient!"**_ With that said, Bill appeared in front of Dipper as the whole room faded to gray.

"Bill! I thought you were coming by in the morning." Dipper stood up, having hid the journal just in time.

"Also, don't read my thoughts without permission, it's rude!"

Bill laughed at the kid's words. "You already gave me permission kid! You said I couldn't control you or erase your memories; you said nothing about reading your thoughts."

Bill had only just arrived what, 2 minutes ago? And Dipper already wanted to slap him.

He sighed. "Have some courtesy, you damn triangle. Do you even know what manners are? Honestly."

Bill shook his cane at the boy. "Of course I know my manners! Geez Pine Tree, your impoliteness knows no bounds." -" _My_ impo-!?" - "I could teach you a thing or two about proper manners if you wanted."

Dipper glared at him. "I'd ask Grunkle Stan before I asked you. Anyway, didn't you want to 'test' this deal of ours? Or did you just come here to insult me?" Dipper wasn't really sure what 'testing' the deal entailed, but he was sure it wasn't anything good.

Bill grinned, "I'm so glad you asked, Pine Tree! I've been setting up all morning, it just took longer than I thought it would."

"Setting up what?" Dipper asked, completely puzzled.

Bill gave a thoughtful look, "Well, I've never been able to make two consecutive deals like this where I get access to your mind _and_ get to influence you at the same time. So I'm excited! I want to know what we can do with this!" Bill gave Dipper a mischievous grin. "If this works out the way I'm hoping it will, we're going to have a lot of fun together, Pine Tree."

Dipper shuddered. He was worried about Bill's intentions but at the same time wasn't sure if he really wanted to know what they were. "I don't want to know your definition of fun."

Bill waved him off. "Anyway, let's get started. We're already way behind schedule, kid, and I've got important things to do. People to see, deals to make, you know how it is."

Then without any warning, Bill tipped his hat, tipping gravity with him. He disappeared as Dipper shouted in surprise and fear as he felt himself suddenly being lifted off the ground and falling out the window he'd left open.

Dipper screamed, "Bill! What are you doing!?"

He heard Bill's voice in his head as he neared the ground, " _ **Testing, Pine Tree. What else?**_ "

Dipper braced himself for a harsh impact but it never came. Just as he neared the ground, the world tilted back and he seemed to slow down as he fell. He landed softly on the grass below.

The brunette gave a sigh of relief before glaring at nothing (since he still couldn't see the damn demon). "What was that, Bill!? How did you make me slow down?"

" _ **Giving you my influence, kid! I wasn't sure if it would work or not, but I'm pleased to see it did!"**_ He heard the blonde in his head before a flash of light momentarily blinded him and Bill stood before him.

' _Wasn't sure if it would work or not, huh…'_ Dipper thought dryly. Well, it was nice to know the demon was willing to risk Dipper's safety. Dick.

If Bill heard his thoughts, and Dipper knew the demon had, he ignored them.

The demon seemed...oddly excited. "These two deals go perfectly together, kid! Being in your mind makes it a lot easier to -" he stopped as Dipper interrupted.

"Stop, Bill! You keep talking about this damn 'influencing' of yours but I still have no clue what you're talking about! Tell me right now, exactly, what do you mean by 'influence'?" Dipper gave him a hard stare, refusing to allow anything further until the blonde talked.

Bill sighed with a shake of his head. "I'm disappointed, Pine Tree. Honestly, of all the meat bags I thought you would've figured it out by now."

"You haven't exactly given me much to work with now, have you?" The curt response came. He wouldn't acknowledge Bill's attempt to taunt him.

Bill rolled his eye, " _Influence_ , Pine Tree." Dipper was getting really sick of that word. "As in I have an effect on you. As in, I can project _onto_ you."

Dipper's eyes widened. Wait, did Bill mean-

The demon grinned at him. "About time! Yes, that means I can project my powers onto you! Pretty cool, right? Makes you wanna stay on my good side, doesn't it?" Bill said with a teasing voice.

Dipper was too stunned at the new information to give a snarky comment back.

* * *

Cutie: I really like using exclamation points, don't I? I mean, can you blame me? Everything Bill says sounds like it should end with an exclamation point. So it's his fault, not mine.

Also, sorry this took so long. I haven't had a ton of inspiration lately and classes have been kicking my ass.


End file.
